Awards
A&T Professor Receives Award for Excellence from University of North Carolina System
By
May 5, 2009, 14:31

Dr. Doretha Foushee, associate professor in the College of Arts and Sciences at North Carolina A&T State University is the recipient of the University of North Carolina Board of Governors Award for Excellence in Teaching. The biology professor and graduate student coordinator was recognized for dedication to development of students as independent, life-long learners. Dr. Foushee, who has been a faculty member at A&T for more than 20 years, was also the recipient of the Outstanding Teaching Award for the College of Arts and Sciences.

The Board of Governors Awards for Excellence in Teaching were created in 1994 to encourage, identify, recognize, reward, and support excellent teaching within the university. A cash award of $7,500 and a bronze medallion created especially for the award are given to 16 recipients, one from each UNC institution, at an annual recognition luncheon hosted by the Board in the Spring.

Dr. Foushee, who has been a faculty member at A&T for more than 20 years, was also the recipient of the Outstanding Teaching Award for the College of Arts and Sciences. Teaching cutting-edge content in a learning environment that promotes active engagement of students in the learning process, she consistently guides her students to high levels of scientific understanding by using a variety of pedagogical strategies.

In addition, her excitement about science motivates her students to excel beyond their self-imposed limits. One student noted that Dr. Foushee’s enthusiasm inspires her to learn more, while another student said that she was inspired to achieve things that she never thought possible because of the nurturing support and encouragement she received in her class.
     
"I have enjoyed the opportunity of playing a role in shaping the lives of young scientists from all corners of the nation and from several international locations.  I have observed the changes that have taken place in the attitudes, learning styles, and expectations of students over these years. 

"It has been necessary to modify my teaching strategies to assist students of each generation in developing their fullest academic potential.  My greatest satisfaction comes as I see students who enter my classes with low expectations, low self-esteem, a narrow view of career options, and sometimes, bad attitudes, and leave my classes knowing that they can achieve more than they expected, and that there are many careers in which they can excel," said Dr. Foushee.

"Teaching, for me, not only takes place in the classroom but also in the research laboratory and in informal settings in the department. Engaging the students in research allows them to further develop the skills of asking good questions, hypothesis formation, experimental design, presentation of data in various forms, analysis of data, and the communication of their research findings in written and oral formats," she added.
 
Dr. Foushee received her bachelor's of science degree from Shaw University in 1967, a master's degree from North Carolina Central University in 1980 and a doctorate degree from the University of Maryland, College Park, in 1985. She is a native of Wallace, N.C. She has been a part of numerous research funded projects and published abstracts. She is a member of the American Society for Microbiology, the American Society for Limnology and Oceanography, Beta Beta Beta Biological Honor Society and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority. She currently serves as the chair of the Institutional Biosafety Committee at A&T.